From the moment of his election to the message contained in his latest encyclical, Dilexit nos, entirely dedicated to the spirituality of the Sacred Heart, the friendship between Pope Francis and Università Cattolica, has been instinctive and profound, born under the sign of an immediate harmony between the Pontiff who came “almost from the end of the world” and the University founded by Father Gemelli. This friendship has been manifested in the prestigious roles that the Holy See has always wished to recognise in the Rector of Università Cattolica and, at the same time, has been expressed in a clear commonality of purpose. The reflection on the environment entrusted to the Encyclical Laudato Si’, the call for dialogue and collaboration among peoples in Fratelli tutti, the need for a radical rethinking of economic paradigms and, above all, the commitment to a new Global Educational Pact are the most evident examples of a bond that, year after year, has become ever closer and more effective.
This was also demonstrated during the last affectionate meeting in the Vatican with the community of Università Cattolica and Policlinico Gemelli on Wednesday 16 April, when the Pope expressed his gratitude for the care he received at the Polyclinic. “The Pope,” recalled Rector Elena Beccalli to TgR Rai Lombardia, “has shown his closeness to our University and the Polyclinic on many occasions. Even in his frailty and illness at that time, he showed great joy, he did not spare himself, he was able to give a gesture and a smile to each of us, precisely to show how much he had given himself to his people until the end.”
A final gift, requested by Pope Francis during Holy Week and which arrived shortly after his death, is a small statue of Nuestra Señora de Luján, which Rector Elena Beccalli found waiting for her at Casa Santa Marta, where she had gone to pay her last respects to the Pontiff. The statuette represents the miraculous Virgin venerated in the Sanctuary of Luján (about 70 km from Buenos Aires), patroness of Argentina. The small statue is not only a sign of gratitude, but also and especially the confirmation of a friendship destined to stand the test of time.